The University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Model United Nations team won Outstanding Delegation Awards at National Model United Nations, the world’s largest Model UN, for the 33rd consecutive year.

In 2017, UW Oshkosh received two Outstanding Delegation awards, the highest level of award, making this the sixth consecutive year that UW Oshkosh students represented two countries and received two Outstanding Delegation Awards. Only two universities from among the 180 universities participating won two Outstanding Delegation awards. UW Oshkosh students represented the African nation of Namibia and the Pacific island nation of Brunei Darussalam at the 2017 National Model United Nations held from April 9–13, at United Nations Headquarters in New York.

In addition to the team awards, UW Oshkosh delegates were named as the Outstanding Delegates in six of the nine committees on which Namibia was represented. UW Oshkosh students also won seven position paper awards.

More than 6,500 student competitors from 180 universities in 47 countries on six continents were involved in the week long 2017 competition. Student delegates debated and negotiated agreements regarding a wide range of current issues from the agenda of the real UN, covering political, economic, social, financial, and environmental topics, using the same rooms and facilities in which the global diplomats at the United Nations negotiate agreements on these same issues. The concluding General Assembly was held in the Great Hall at UN Headquarters.

Students are judged on their diplomatic and negotiating skills, their ability to write accurate legal documents that embody the agreements reached, the accuracy with which they represent their respective nations, their knowledge of global issues, their familiarity with the United Nations system and its procedures, practices, bodies, and committees, and their speaking ability.

“Once again UW Oshkosh students clearly stood out among their peers from universities throughout the world in their knowledge of international affairs and the diplomatic process in continuing their record of excellence maintained over 33 years,” Kenneth J. Grieb, coordinator of International Studies and faculty adviser for the UW Oshkosh Model United Nations Team, said.

Participating universities included University of New Haven, Georgia Southern, Baylor, University of South Florida, New South Wales, Washington State University, the City College of New York, Universidad Católica de Valencia, De la Salle University of the Philippines, Kishinchand Chellaram College of Mumbai, India, Regent’s University London, Erasmus University Rotterdam, the University of California Santa Barbara, The Institute of International Relations in Paris, the American University of Cairo, Université du Québec à Montréal, Northwestern Polytechnic University of China, Westminster International University in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Tecnológico de Monterrey Campus San Luis Potosí of Mexico, the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland, the International School of Management in Germany, the College of Europe, Japan Model United Nations, and the Associazione World Students Connections of Italy, to name only a few of the participating schools at the global competition.

A previous version of this article stated that 2017 was the fifth consecutive year that UW Oshkosh students represented two countries and received two Outstanding Delegation Awards. It was actually the sixth consectutive year.

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